Hurricanes' Seth Jarvis set to return to play far sooner than expected

Jarvis, 24 next month, is likely to draw back into the lineup Tuesday night against the Stars after serving as a full participant in this morning’s practice in third-line duties with Jordan Martinook and Jordan Staal. It’s a quicker return than expected for the budding star, who suffered what looked to be a serious rib injury on Dec. 19 against the Panthers. He was placed on IR the following day, listed as week-to-week, but returned to practice on New Year’s Day, less than two weeks later.

All things considered, Carolina will take an eight-game absence. Even with the missed time, he’s well on his way to a third straight 30-goal season. He’s tied for fourth on the Canes in scoring with a 19-10–29 line in 34 games, and while his 0.85 points per game are a small drop-off from last season, his underlying numbers are virtually identical across the board.

The Hurricanes felt Jarvis’ absence acutely. They’re 3-5-0 in those eight without him, allowing five-plus goals in all of those losses. In addition to his goal-scoring impact, the Canes control over 60% of shot attempts when he’s on the ice at five-on-five, so he’s a big element of getting their normally stout two-way game back under control.